Komsomolets Island

Komsomolets
Native name: <span class="nickname" ">остров Комсомолец

Komsomolets Island, Russia
Komsomolets
Geography
Location Arctic
Coordinates 80°29′03″N 94°59′47″E / 80.48417°N 94.99639°E / 80.48417; 94.99639
Archipelago Severnaya Zemlya
Area 9,006 km2 (3,477 sq mi)
Highest elevation 935 m (3,068 ft)
Administration
Russia

Komsomolets Island (Russian: остров Комсомолец) is the northernmost island of the Severnaya Zemlya group in the Russian Arctic, and the third largest island in the group. It is the 82nd largest island on earth.

Geography

Komsomolets Island is separated from October Revolution Island in the south by the Red Army Strait and from Pioneer Island in the east by the Yuny Strait.[1] The northernmost point of the island is the Arctic Cape, the launching point for many Arctic expeditions.

The area of this island has been estimated at 9,006 km². It rises to a height of 780 m. About 65% of the island is covered with glaciers. Komsomolets Island is home to the largest ice cap in Russia, the Academy of Sciences Ice Cap.[2]

Geology

The soil of the island is mostly composed of loose loam and sands, a tundra desert scattered with mosses and lichens.[3]

History

The island was discovered by Boris Vilkitsky in 1913, but its insularity wasn’t proven until 1931, when Georgy Ushakov and Nikolay Urvantsev charted the archipelago during their 1930–32 expedition.[4] They also named it. In keeping with their scheme of naming the islands after events and movements of the Russian Revolution, this island was named in honour of the members of the Komsomol, the "Communist Union of Youth".

Photo Gallery

References

  1. ↑ "Proliv Yunyy". Mapcarta. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
  2. ↑ "Severnaya Zemlya 1999-2000". Ecoshelf. Retrieved March 14, 2012. External link in |publisher= (help)
  3. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20101223015139/http://www.oceandots.com/arctic/severnaya-zemlya Russian Arctic - Severnaya Zemlya
  4. ↑ Barr, William (1975). "Severnaya Zemlya: the last major discovery". Geographical Journal. 141 (1): 59–71. doi:10.2307/1796946.

External links

Coordinates: 80°29′03″N 94°59′47″E / 80.48417°N 94.99639°E / 80.48417; 94.99639

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